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Magnesium alloys have received a lot of attention in aerospace, automotive, electronic communications and other fields due to their low density, high specific strength and damping performance. However, magnesium alloy sheets prepared by conventional thermomechanical processing usually have a strong basal texture, resulting in poor formability. In this paper, Mg–Mn–Ce alloys with good plastic forming ability were prepared by studying and optimizing the annealing process. Under the low-temperature annealing condition, it can promote the static recrystallization and grain refinement of Mg–Mn–Ce alloy, and also eliminate the internal stress. With the increase of annealing temperature, a large amount of dispersed Mg12Ce as a stable second phase effectively hindered the grain boundary migration, while the nanoscale α-Mn forms a fine second phase to inhibit grain growth, and both of them together greatly stabilize the deformation structure of the alloy, and maintain a good grain organization under the condition of annealing temperature of 300 °C and holding time of 30 min. The present work also improves the Arrhenius constitutive equation for the Mg–Mn–Ce alloy with respect to the degree of deviation, which significantly improves the accuracy of the model in predicting the thermoforming behavior. Meanwhile, to address the shortcomings of the traditional forming method of magnesium alloy, the processing process of spreading the centrifugal casting tube flat is proposed, the forming process is simulated, and the location of easy breakage in the forming process is predicted. These findings provide microanalytical support for the improvement of forming properties of magnesium alloys by annealing.

Abstract Aim Tumor budding (TB) has excellent prognostic value in many solid tumors, but there is little research on it in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This study assessed the prognostic value of TB in patients with HCC who received hepatectomy. Methods This retrospective study included 210 patients with HCC who received curative hepatectomy at the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, between 2016 and 2018. TB was evaluated on hematoxylin‐ and eosin‐stained slides according to the criteria established by the 2016 International Tumor Budding Consensus Conference. t‐tests, Chi‐squared tests, and rank‐sum tests were used to correlate the extent of TB with clinicopathological parameters. Prognostic analysis was performed using Cox regression models and the Kaplan–Meier method. Results The positive detection rate of TB was 45.2% (95/210) in 210 patients with HCC. Patients positive for TB always exhibit lower tumor differentiation, higher hepatitis B virus DNA levels, and more severe liver fibrosis. Multivariate Cox analysis identified TB (hazard ratio [HR]: 2.232, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.479–3.368, p

Abstract Background Breast cancer stem cell (CSC) expansion results in tumor progression and chemoresistance; however, the modulation of CSC pluripotency remains unexplored. Transmembrane protein 120B (TMEM120B) is a newly discovered protein expressed in human tissues, especially in malignant tissues; however, its role in CSC expansion has not been studied. This study aimed to determine the role of TMEM120B in transcriptional coactivator with PDZ-binding motif (TAZ)-mediated CSC expansion and chemotherapy resistance. Methods Both bioinformatics analysis and immunohistochemistry assays were performed to examine expression patterns of TMEM120B in lung, breast, gastric, colon, and ovarian cancers. Clinicopathological factors and overall survival were also evaluated. Next, colony formation assay, MTT assay, EdU assay, transwell assay, wound healing assay, flow cytometric analysis, sphere formation assay, western blotting analysis, mouse xenograft model analysis, RNA-sequencing assay, immunofluorescence assay, and reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction were performed to investigate the effect of TMEM120B interaction on proliferation, invasion, stemness, chemotherapy sensitivity, and integrin/FAK/TAZ/mTOR activation. Further, liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry analysis, GST pull-down assay, and immunoprecipitation assays were performed to evaluate the interactions between TMEM120B, myosin heavy chain 9 (MYH9), and CUL9. Results TMEM120B expression was elevated in lung, breast, gastric, colon, and ovarian cancers. TMEM120B expression positively correlated with advanced TNM stage, lymph node metastasis, and poor prognosis. Overexpression of TMEM120B promoted breast cancer cell proliferation, invasion, and stemness by activating TAZ-mTOR signaling. TMEM120B directly bound to the coil-coil domain of MYH9, which accelerated the assembly of focal adhesions (FAs) and facilitated the translocation of TAZ. Furthermore, TMEM120B stabilized MYH9 by preventing its degradation by CUL9 in a ubiquitin-dependent manner. Overexpression of TMEM120B enhanced resistance to docetaxel and doxorubicin. Conversely, overexpression of TMEM120B-∆CCD delayed the formation of FAs, suppressed TAZ-mTOR signaling, and abrogated chemotherapy resistance. TMEM120B expression was elevated in breast cancer patients with poor treatment outcomes (Miller/Payne grades 1–2) than in those with better outcomes (Miller/Payne grades 3–5). Conclusions Our study reveals that TMEM120B bound to and stabilized MYH9 by preventing its degradation. This interaction activated the β1-integrin/FAK-TAZ-mTOR signaling axis, maintaining stemness and accelerating chemotherapy resistance.

Magnesium-manganese series alloys, as materials with very low-density value, have excellent mechanical properties and corrosion resistance, and have broad prospects in automotive, aerospace, biomedical and other fields. In this work, the thermal deformation behavior and microstructural evolution of Mg–Mn–Ce alloys were investigated through uniaxial hot stretching experiments on Mg–Mn–Ce alloy plates under different deformation conditions, with the main focus on the plastic deformation mechanism of Mg–Mn–Ce alloys under different forming conditions. The unified viscoplastic constitutive equation for coupled damage is developed and compared with different types of constitutive equation models. Remarkably, the decrease in peak stress with increasing temperature or decreasing strain rate in Mg–Mn–Ce alloys is due to the fact that the internal slip system of the material is more easily activated with increasing temperature. As the temperature increases, the dislocations within the material decrease, which is due to the fact that the temperature increase makes the DRX action progressively stronger than the dislocation action, and the DRX leads to a significant coarsening of the grains at 573 K. In addition, the fracture behavior of the alloy under different deformation conditions has also been investigated, and the fracture pattern of Mg–Mn–Ce alloys transitions from pronounced cleavage fracture to the appearance of dimples and finally to ductile fracture with a large number of dimples as the temperature increases.

Phase change materials can be converted between solid, liquid, and gaseous states, absorbing or releasing a large amount of heat. PCM is incorporated into concrete to adjust the temperature difference between inside and outside of concrete, which can reduce cracking. In this paper, the finite element analysis method is used to establish the model of an ordinary concrete structure, doped with phase change materials, on the basis of mechanical properties and a temperature regulation test performed by calculating the adiabatic temperature rise of concrete with different contents of composite phase change material, comparing the experimental and simulation results of the ordinary concrete structures with phase change materials, and analyzing the change in temperature field of the concrete structure with the content of self-prepared composite phase change materials. It is found that the addition of self-prepared composite phase change materials reduces the temperature peak of the concrete structure in the stage of hydration heat and delays the time taken to reach the temperature peak. Then, the temperature field of the phase change mass concrete structure is established, and the influence law of composite phase change material admixture on the temperature field of mass concrete is summarized through the time–temperature curves of different admixture amounts and positions so as to predict the possibility of cracks in mass concrete.

Abstract Sorafenib therapy improves overall survival (OS) in patients with FLT3 internal tandem duplication (ITD) acute myeloid leukemia (AML) undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. We explored the efficacy of sorafenib therapy in this population with different concomitant genetic patterns. In this multi-center, cohort study, we enrolled patients with FLT3-ITD AML undergoing allogenic hematopoietic cell transplantation. Patients with sorafenib maintenance post-transplantation for at least four weeks were allocated to the sorafenib group, and otherwise to the control group. Endpoints were OS, disease-free survival, and relapse for the whole cohort and OS for genetic pattern subgroups. Among 613 patients enrolled, 275 were in the sorafenib and 338 the control group. Median follow-up was 36.5 (interquartile range (IQR), 25.2–44.7) months post-transplantation. The 3-year OS post-transplantation was 79.6% (95% confidential interval (CI) 74.8%–84.6%) and 65.2% (95% CI 60.3%–70.6%) (Hazard ratio (HR) 0.50, 95% CI 0.37–0.69; P

Jasminum sambac is an excellent ornamental species that is renowned worldwide for its pure white flowers and strong fragrance. However, its intolerance to low temperatures limits its cultivation range. Methyl jasmonate (MeJA), an essential plant growth regulator, plays a significant role in assisting plants to resist various stresses. Hence, this study was carried out to decipher the capabilities of diverse concentrations of MeJA in helping J. sambac to resist cold stress by measuring different physiological indexes. A normal temperature (15 °C/10 °C) and low temperature (7 °C/2 °C) were applied to J. sambac seedlings, and a one-way analysis of variance followed by a Duncan’s multiple range test was adopted to compare the differences between the indicators under 5 μmol·L−1, 10 μmol·L−1 and 20 μmol·L−1 of MeJA treatments. The results showed that cold stress significantly decreased the contents of soluble sugar and soluble protein, while the application of MeJA at 10 μmol·L−1 and 20 μmol·L−1 resulted in a partial recovery. In addition, cold stress dramatically hindered the accumulation of total chlorophyll in leaves. Exogenous MeJA elevated the total chlorophyll content during the whole sampling period. The hydrogen peroxide and malondialdehyde levels generally increased in response to low temperatures, and they caused adverse effects on J. sambac, whereas this was effectively alleviated through the application of MeJA. MeJA was also able to improve the resistance of J. sambac by boosting the activity of antioxidant enzymes to remove the excess of reactive oxygen species. In conclusion, we highlighted that exogenous MeJA could attenuate the negative consequences of cold stress for J. sambac, and 10 μmol·L−1 of MeJA treatment could be a feasible strategy for enhancing the resistance of J. sambac to low temperatures and promoting its growth.

To improve the application scope and economic value of chickpea, chickpea flour with different additions (0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, and 40%) was mixed with wheat flour to make noodles. Texture quality, cooking quality, microstructure, and glycemic index (GI) were used to explore the effects of chickpea flour on noodles' processing quality and functional quality. The results showed that the addition of chickpea flour in the range of 0% to 20% had no significant effect on the texture quality, cooking quality, and microstructure of noodles. However, the texture quality and cooking quality of noodles were significantly reduced and the microstructure was significantly damaged when the addition amount was in the range of 20%~40%. The higher addition amount of chickpea flour deteriorated the processing quality of noodles. 0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, and 40% additions of chickpea flour noodles in vitro enzymatic method of the GI values were 76.97±0.49, 67.19±0.84, 64.95±0.71, 63.24±0.29 and 61.84±0.55, respectively. All belonged to middle GI food. The order of postprandial blood glucose in mice after gavage was wheat flour noodles>10% added chickpea flour noodles>20% added chickpea flour noodles>30% added chickpea flour noodles>40% added chickpea flour noodles. It was consistent with the results of in vitro enzymatic method. In summary, the addition of chickpea flour below 20% could improve the processing quality of noodles. The addition of chickpea flour could significantly reduce the digestive properties of starch. It would provide more choices for the diet of special populations such as diabetes.

Optical vortex phase beams have unique amplitudes and phase distributions, rendering them sensitive to the position and symmetry of modulating structures. This sensitivity can facilitate their applicability to optical communications. We propose a method for modulating the topological charge of input vortex beams using a pinhole screen. By changing the pinhole arrangement to match the phase of the vortex beam and considering the Fresnel diffraction theory, the transmission light field is calculated numerically. In addition, the intensity map of the adjustable topological charges is measured near the origin, with the experimental results suitably agreeing with the theoretical simulation results. The diffraction field modulated by spiral pinholes has various orbital angular momentum modes, including the increase and decrease of orbital angular momentum, especially when the incident vortex beam is more complex. The proposed method opens new possibilities for the use of vortex beams in advanced optical applications with improved capabilities and functionalities.

BackgroundDiabetic retinopathy (DR) is a common microvascular complication of diabetes mellitus (DM) and is one of the leading causes of blindness among DM patients. However, the molecular mechanism involving DR remains unclear.MethodsA case–control study with age-, sex-, and duration-matched diabetic patients and controls was conducted, which included 15 type 2 DM (T2DM) patients with DR and 15 T2DM patients without DR. Shotgun sequencing and non-targeted metabolomic profiling analyses of fecal samples were performed, and comprehensive bioinformatics analyses were conducted.ResultsUsing metagenomic analyses, we identified 293,460 unique genes in the non-DR group, while that in the DR group was 283,235, and the number of overlapping genes was 1,237,914. Regarding phylum levels, Actinobacteria decreased but Bacteroidetes increased in the DR group when compared with those in the control group. Regarding genus levels, Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus decreased. Cellular processes, environmental information processes, and metabolism-related pathways were found at higher levels in the gut microbiome of DR patients. Using metabolomic analyses, we found 116 differentially expressed metabolites with a positive ion model and 168 differentially expressed metabolites with a negative ion model between the two groups. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes annotation revealed six pathways with different levels between DR and diabetic controls, namely, cellular processes, environmental information processing, genetic information processing, human diseases, organismal systems and metabolism. Moreover, lysine biosynthesis and lysine degradation were enriched using a positive model, but histidine metabolism and β-alanine metabolism were enriched using a negative model.ConclusionsTogether, the metagenomic profiles of DR patients indicated different gut microbiota compositions and characteristic fecal metabolic phenotypes in DR patients. Our findings of microbial pathways therefore provided potential etiological and therapeutic targets for DR patients.

Most ocular diseases observed with cataract, chlamydia trachomatis, diabetic retinopathy, and uveitis, have their associations with environmental exposures, lifestyle, and habits, making their distribution has certain temporal and spatial features based essentially on epidemiology. Spatial epidemiology focuses on the use of geographic information systems (GIS), global navigation satellite systems (GNSS), and spatial analysis to map spatial distribution as well as change the tendency of diseases and investigate the health services status of populations. Recently, the spatial epidemic approach has been applied in the field of ophthalmology, which provides many valuable key messages on ocular disease prevention and control. This work briefly reviewed the context of spatial epidemiology and summarized its progress in the analysis of spatiotemporal distribution, non-monitoring area data estimation, influencing factors of ocular diseases, and allocation and utilization of eye health resources, to provide references for its application in the prevention and control of ocular diseases in the future.

In order to study the influence of the creep of soft soil and the corrosion damage of reinforced concrete on the horizontal bearing behavior of piles, the novel p-y curve model was established considering the time-varying characteristics of soil parameters. The attenuation law of the bending stiffness of reinforced concrete piles under chloride erosion was analyzed by introducing the bending stiffness reduction factor. The limit state function of pile reliability analysis was then established considering the time-varying characteristics. The reliability index of a pile under horizontal displacement failure mode was obtained using the quadratic response surface method. Finally, the sensitivity analysis of random variables (cohesion, internal friction angle, concrete cover, and chloride concentration) on the time-varying reliability of a pile under horizontal displacement failure mode was carried out. The influence of the distribution types of soil parameters on the time-varying reliability was considered. The results show that the load-bearing characteristics of the horizontally loaded pile are impacted significantly by the time-varying characteristics of the soil. The maximum horizontal displacement of the pile increases nonlinearly with the increase in service time. When the horizontal displacement failure mode occurs, the variability in the internal friction angle has a significant impact on the reliability of the pile. The reliability index decreases nonlinearly with an increase in service time. When the soil parameters obey the extreme value type I distribution, the corresponding reliability index is greater than that of log-normal distribution and normal distribution.

The eigenmodes based on paraxial accelerating beams in nonlinear atomic vapors with Kerr and cubic-quintic nonlinearities are demonstrated from mathematical models and numerical simulations. Upon adjusting the generation and propagation conditions, these nonlinear accelerating beams exhibit different evolution properties. We show numerically that the adopted beams can propagate robustly in the medium regardless of its absorption properties. The shape and peak intensity of the main lobes of these beams, based on the fact that they are the eigenmodes of the nonlinear Schrödinger equation in atomic media, are preserved for a significantly long propagation distance. If such beams are not the modes of the system, they are subject to the under-healing or over-healing effect, which damages the shape of the self-accelerating beams. In a numerical investigation, we also discuss the interactions between truncated accelerating beams, which readily generate non-accelerating solitons and soliton pairs.

Objectives This study aimed to determine the relationship between the body mass index (BMI) and short-term mortality of patients with intra-abdominal infection (IAI) using the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care (MIMIC-III) database.Design Retrospective cohort study.Setting Adult intensive care units (ICUs) at a tertiary hospital in the USA .Participants Adult IAI ICU patients from 2001 to 2012 in the MIMIC-III database.Interventions In univariate analysis, we compared the differences in the characteristics of patients in each BMI group. Cox regression models were used to evaluate the relationships between BMI and short-term prognosis.Primary and secondary outcome measures 90-day survival.Results In total, 1161 patients with IAI were included. There were 399 (34.4%) patients with a normal BMI (30 kg/m2) who tended to be younger (p

Chronic graft-vs.-host disease (cGVHD) remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). Previous studies have shown that autoantibodies play an important role in the development of cGVHD. Anti-nuclear autoantibodies (ANA) is the most frequently detected autoantibodies in patients with cGVHD, but the role of anti-Ro52 autoantibodies (anti-Ro52) in cGVHD remains largely unknown. In this study, we analyzed autoantibodies from 84 patients after allo-HSCT, including 42 with active cGVHD and 42 without cGVHD. Autoantibodies were found in 36 (42.9%) patients. Among these autoantibody-positive patients, 28 (77.8%) patients had active cGVHD. The most frequent autoantibodies in patients with active cGVHD were ANA (50.0%), anti-Ro52 (28.6%) and anti-mitochondrial autoantibodies type 2 (4.8%). We further explored the association between anti-Ro52 and cGVHD. Patients with active cGVHD had higher anti-Ro52 levels than patients without cGVHD (P < 0.05). The increases of anti-Ro52 levels were more significant in patients with moderate/severe cGVHD compared to those of patients without cGVHD (P < 0.05). Stratified and multivariable logistic regression analysis demonstrated that moderate/severe cGVHD was an independent risk factor for the levels of anti-Ro52 (P < 0.01). ROC analysis confirmed anti-Ro52 as a risk factor for progression of skin cGVHD. Moreover, the anti-Ro52 levels were highly correlated with the levels of B cell-activating factor (BAFF) and IgG1 antibodies. Our study demonstrates that anti-Ro52 is associated with cGVHD. The increased levels of anti-Ro52 were associated with higher levels of BAFF and IgG1 antibodies, suggesting a mechanistic link between elevated anti-Ro52 levels and aberrant B cell homeostasis.

Styrax tonkinensis is a kind of multifunctional tree with wood and medicinal value, and has high ornamental value, so it has been widely concerned by researchers. In this study, exogenous 24-epibrassinolide (EBL) was applied on the fruiting trees of S. tonkinensis to explore its effect on the photosynthesis and seed development of S. tonkinensis. The results showed that EBL enhanced starch accumulation in seeds, but had little effect on soluble protein content. Different EBL treatments caused various impacts on hormone content. EBL20 and EBL5 increased IAA and ABA content, respectively, whereas EBL didn’t affect GA3 content obviously. Exogenous EBL promoted the photosynthetic process of S. tonkinensis, primarily manifesting as an elevation in chlorophyll content and Rubisco activity within the leaves. In addition, EBL also exhibited a stimulatory effect on glucose oxidation pathway enzyme activity, with EBL5 exerting the most significant impact. Our findings underscore the potential of EBL application as a viable strategy to enhance the photosynthesis and seed development of S. tonkinensiS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose. To evaluate the relationship between the aqueous humor levels of VEGF, TNF-a, IL-10, IL-6, IL-12, MCP-1, and IP-10 with DR/DME. Methods. PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), and Wanfang databases were searched up to October 2018. Systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted. Results. 18 studies comprising 362 cases with DR (100 with DME) and 620 controls without DR were included in this meta-analysis. There was a significant association between VEGF levels in the aqueous humor and DR (standardized mean difference (SMD) 1.94 (95% CI 1.05-2.83)) and DME (1.07 (0.71, 1.42)). Furthermore, a significant correlation was observed between levels of IL-6 and DR (3.53 (0.37, 6.69)), and similarly correlation with DME (1.26 (0.30, 2.21)). The relationship between MCP-1 and DR and DME was significant, in which the SMD was (0.49 (0.09, 0.89)) and (1.49 (0.78, 2.20)), respectively. However, IL-12, IP-10, and TNF-a had no correlation with DR and DME, whereas there was a significant relationship between IL-8 and DME (1.68 (0.97, 2.40)). Conclusion. Elevated levels of VEGF, IL-6, and MCP-1 in the aqueous humor were associated with the risk for the presence of DR, and levels of VEGF, IL-6, IL-8, and MCP-1 were associated with the risk of DME. Furthermore, these biomarkers may be used as potential predictors or therapeutic targets for DR/DME. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]